Delta County Board of Commissioners Meeting (Oct. 10th, 2023) Budgets to Building

Delta County Michigan is zooming forward with discussions on topics including whitetail deer, larger airport planes, legal representation issues, budgets, meeting compensation, healthcare costs, board appointments, opioid monies, so on and so forth. There is room to encourage greater investments to shore up budgets that rests on openness to the new and unique.

Local governments should continuously strive toward moving beyond the budget-expense paradigm and toward resource-growth models. The two different lines of thinking explore various connections in the brain that leads to different types of outcomes. Focusing more on growth versus spending explores unique ideas that can open up opportunities.

One line of thinking asks questions on how to use a limited budget to pay for services that are becoming more expensive and managing loans where interest rates are stifling. This leads to chronic budget short falls and possible waste (as a general conception of governance and not specific to here). The other moves down a path to exploring using local assets mixed with industry/investment, local, state, and federal options to raise long term sustainability (i.e. perpetual sustainable systems). 

Tourism, attracting entrepreneurs, shared marketing to target audiences, reaching out to industrial investors (i.e. ship building, tourism, entrepreneurial tourism-export hubs, paper mill, etc.), asking residents to submit revenue and cost saving ideas, seamlessness of opportunity (county and city offerings), coordinated grants, etc. that often lead to maximization. New doors can open.

A few budgeting and investment articles. Municipal Budgeting Tips, Four Ways to Fund Economic Development, Attracting Investment

Notes: If I make a mistake feel free to leave a comment and I will correct. 

-New Airport Manager: Offering easy in and out flights to major hubs increase tourism. Delta County New Airport Manager

-Prosecuting Attorney: Can appoint new attorney, prosecutor not involved, must have on record reason why prosecutor/civil council is not involved. Insurance attorneys should be first contacted. Department has capacity. Because of lack of MMRA involvement general fund must pay any legal issues and costs. Felt wasn't allow to speak or address concerns. Removal of people from audience rules and procedures were not followed with 10 day written notice. Transparency should be increased. Issues were not allowed to be discussed prior to be passing by committee. September 19th, 2023 meeting was of particular concern. See Article on Prosecuting Attorney Question

-Healthcare Options: Tabled. Rising cost of healthcare.

-Paying commissioner for attending meetings. It makes sense in general if it is well managed and transparent.

-Prosecuting attorney states that salary should go up for retention purposes. She makes a good point if we are not competitive. That will raise costs so the county should think of ways to create net positives that improve the financial health of the budget. 

-Board memberships are made both Republican and Democrat.

-UP Whitetail Association. Clear out trails from small trees and protect rabbit habitat.

-Opioid monies and determining how to spend. Discussion on steering committee. Drug Abuse Report US

- Discussion on getting Veteran Services Officer a secretary. Want to support for the next 5 years.

-Drug abuse impacts community. 

Americans Evacuating: We hope for their safe return home.

 I'm happy to see that Americans who desire to leave are finding a way home. We should pray for long lasting peace.

Life Expectancy Rises with Education

As one becomes more educated they typically live longer. That is in addition to the knowledge that comes from learning and development. What we often find is that education not only comes with a benefit to society but also to the health of people. US Life Expectancy Gap

A few pieces from the article.

-Americans without education are dying 9 years earlier. 

-No degree had life expectancies of 73 yeas old and those with a degree 83 years old.

-The US life expectancy ranking dropped from 40 to 46ths place.

Radicalization and Deradicalization When Mental Health and Group Hate Could be Associated

Hate is a dangerous thing and when allowed to fester it can be inherently destructive to individuals, communities and society at large. It can be difficult for people to understand the deeper roots of hate and why it is important not to encourage such behaviors explicitly or implicitly. Whether we are discussing individual or group hate learning how to minimize its devastating impact can lead to greater societal togetherness and effectiveness of outcomes. Below is information in individual hate, group level hate, radicalization of groups, and deradicalization method.

Individual Hate and Mental Health:

First, while hate isn't necessarily always mental health it is often a contributory factor in consistent erroneous conclusions. In a hypothetical example I have been using, hate was first launched by mental health issues that were associated with bullying, belittling, rudeness, selfishness, so and so forth. Dark triad perspectives can make their way from individuals to social context.

Such existing poor behaviors were signs that those who started and encourage hate had prior mental health issues and no real intent on fixing themselves so as to create higher prosocial outcomes. Is Extreme Racism a Mental Illness? When people engage in extreme hate it impacts their brain functions and activates networks that seem to cater to their deeper mental dysfunctions.  Neural Correlates of Hate

Group Level Hate: 

Secondly, hate is very dangerous on a group level. A study discusses hate in sports, hate of others, other groups, etc. In the example, the group that launched a hate campaign were highly involved in sports and while the hate in this hypothetical example has subsided on this level, they are still very much tied into their cultic type perception of others and stubbornly maintain their own rules, norms, and social structure that could lead to more hate in the future against weaker targets. Such correction is dependent on social learning and the infusion of critical thinking. “Ingroup love” and “outgroup hate” in intergroup conflict between natural groups

Radicalization of Groups:

Third, unchecked radicalization can grow without appropriate challenge. We have seen this in the January 6th sacking of the capital and we see this within some of our hometowns. Thus, it is important to understand how the dysfunction of one can sometimes lead to the dysfunction of others. Radicalization of staunch ideologies can lead to all types of other issues when positions of authority and hate are mixed together. Laws, norms and rules can justify the unjustifiable where they were inherently started with false premises. What Do Former Extremists and Their Families Say About Radicalization and Deradicalization in America?

Deradicalization Models: 

Because radicalization results from social networks and reliance on a hate narrative (misinformation in social networks and online) it is important to encourage deradicalization of such groups making a pathway to hate through more appropriate feedback. Research has shown that misinformation and social networks are often part of the group hate assumptions and critical thinking is often missing (i.e. going back to the same root assumption without double checking. i.e. this person or all those people are like X or Z beliefs which skipping some of the logical steps that lead to a rational conclusion.) Thus, I might use the term Theory of Mirrors (In this sense social mirrors) because some people are unable to think critically about themselves and those they see as different and less worthy of civility.

Contrary to popular opinion, any group can be radicalized if they gain a sense of legitimacy and self confirm beliefs through poor wider false anchoring's of symbolism.  Reflecting back accurate information can and does lead to greater insight and alternative anchoring that not only highlights the danger of such beliefs but its impact on fostering hate on an individual or group level. Bringing people back to their root assumptions and challenging them can make a big difference. 

Deradicalizing a group is not an easy task and comes with perils and dangers themselves for those trying to help others. Somewhere along the line they may have filled in a blank with biased preexisting poor assumptions and getting back to that root assumption is risky at best. Breaking up the Bubble: Improving critical thinking skills and tolerance of ambiguity in deradicalization mentoring.

‘The beast does but know, but the man knows that he knows.’ John Donne(1628)

What WE Stand For:

In this country we believe in freedom of religion and freedom of speech for a reason and those who misuse that are not following the supreme laws of the land. It is also a sign that something can be amiss in some groups and their distorted perceptions. When we stand for our oaths we should do so with diligence to the universal principles we all swore to uphold. Makes no difference what is going on in the world, in politics, or within our own heads. 

Let us not make the world's problems our problems by bringing them here to a land of freedom. Peace is the path and togetherness in support of these shared universal principles that lead to greater prosperity of society. One's religion or politics should not factor into that least they derail the process of critical thinking and essential philosophical truths. Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Black, White, Brown, etc...all human life is precious.

"Without freedom of thought there can be no such thing as wisdom; and no such thing as public liberty, without freedom of speech." Benjamin Franklin

Volunteer Firefighting: The use of applied psychology that teaches the value of goal setting and self-talk (Business and Public Service).

Firefighting is an important part of our society and it hasn't received the national attention and support it needs. We can learn by studying and looking at this service type why not only firefighting is struggling to recruit new members but also why some of the other services experience similar issues (The military, policing, EMT, etc.). finding solutions can be fostered through the use of applied psychology and how that can be used to improve performance among current firefighters. The Nature of Firefighting is Changing.

Young people are very much concerned with global warming and other environmental issues that would be a good catalyst for interest. Likewise, there is a higher percentage of people who want to support their communities and utilized other skills to do something meaningful with their time and lives. Not to mention other untapped resources from the business world and the lessons we can learn through the study of this population and how that might apply to organizational development. 

From the study below you will begin to see some of the psychological processes firefighters are using in training and actualized performance as tactical athletes. What can ascertain on a broad sense from the study below is that goal setting and mental preparation is important in realized outcomes (Same for firefighters and employees). 

When we study organizations outside of business such as firefighting we can sometimes take lessons from those who must performance in their roles to save theirs and others lives so we can put that to good use not only in the first responder world but perhaps also in the business world as well. 

The Psychology of Firefighting: 

A study conducted in Milwaukee N=109 studied the Big 5 Personality Theory on Saucier’s 40-item Mini Markers scale on the psychological mechanisms of live performance tactical firefighter athletes.  Because injury rates are around 17.7% there is a need to understand psychological performance that leads to outcomes and reduce injury. You can read the a The Psychology of Firefighting

-Of the basic skills, firefighters’ reported using goal setting most frequently and relaxation least frequently in both practice and performance.

-Firefighters’ reported highest scores for their ability to use emotional control and lowest scores for their ability to use automaticity in both practice and performance

-Firefighters in the current study reported using self-talk more during practice than during performance (As a note one must wonder if high stress situations rely on prior embedded learning of action and instinct.)

National Firefighting Stats:

NFPA provided some great information and resources on firefighting. HERE. You can also review their report HERE.  There is a great need to support local fire departments. Businesses could have a large scale impact on that in a way that gives employees the life-work balance they need to stay engaged (quoted below).

-NFPA estimates there were an estimated 1,041,200 career and volunteer firefighters in the United States in 2020. Of the total number of firefighters 364,300 (35%) were career firefighters and 676,900 (65%) were volunteer firefighters.

-In 2020, 89,600 firefighters were female (9%). Of the career firefighters, 17,200 were female. There were also 72,400 volunteer firefighters who were female.

-Fifty percent of firefighters are between 30 and 49 years old.

-There were 29,452 fire departments in the United States in 2020. Of these, 18% were all career or mostly career departments and protected 70% of the US population.

-Nationwide 37% of fire departments provided no emergency medical services, 46% provided basic life support (BLS), and 17% provided advanced life support (ALS).

A Few Ideas on Business and Firefighting Could CoCreate

Unexplored outlets that reduce silos between businesses and community. While some might be great and some not practical it is usually the exploration of ideas that lead to new ideas. 

-Encouraging people to be involved in their community through firefighting and other activities could have a positive influence not only on moral but also on leadership training and human capital development as knowledge bleeds from one organization and industry to the next.

-Businesses that support and sponsor firefighting organizations may gain un realized public relations/brand benefits. For example, our fire department has an immediate need for $10K in air bottles and $5K in locks.

-Donating to firefighting not only is tax deductible but could reduce insurance costs for companies and locations.

-Business knowledge could have a major impact on firefighting effectiveness as processes and capacity increases.

-Executives could donate some time to solving community problems with their higher systems, social connections, and evidence based strategic decision making.

-Employees who feel they are spending some of their time doing worthwhile activities like firefighting may have more satisfaction with their jobs. i.e. employee fundraising, administration or active firefighting, social media/marketing, as donations of time.

-Offering free tuition and company sponsored tuition to volunteer firefighters that log a certain amount of hours.

-Sponsoring research on firefighting improves those departments, saves lives and show positive corporate citizenship with actualized outcomes. i.e. industry-university-fire department research.

-Utilize fire departments as constructive outlets for company employees but also a source for recruitment of new motivated employees. The expectation that those who volunteer have certain characteristics that make them highly desirable by companies.

-University could utilize fire departments for training, education, and course work (i.e. management or marketing case studies or class projects.)

-We have a youth disconnection problem and this could be one way of training them, engaging with them, and socializing them for greater local/national human capital outcomes.

-Partnering with local firefighting departments to develop evacuation plans, inspect properties, check fire safety/first aid equipment, health/first aid knowledge, egress signs, etc...

-Perhaps a tax benefit for companies that actively support, fund, and recruit for/from fire departments. As our national budget is likely to see some adjustments it is one way to encourage community based funding that takes the burden off of the national government.

Is the above called brain storming or brain writing? Maybe you can think of a few of your own

Empathy and Leadership: Multiple Tools that Lead to Organizational Improvement

In the business world we often think of the tough nosed boss that takes no excuses and hits the nail on the hammer until they get the results they want. This often leads to higher levels of turnover and toxic behaviors that can decrease the overall performance of the organization. Low empathy environments encourage quite quitting and toxic short gains while higher empathy can create adaptive teams and stronger  long term group outcomes. Empathy can have serious impacts on business and its long term financial and market impact value through developing people to their highest performance zone.

Consider some of the benefits of empathy....

Empathy in leadership leads to increased efficiency (88%), creativity (87%), job satisfaction (87%), idea sharing (86%), innovation (85%) company revenue (83%)." Employee Empathy Expectation and Leadership.

It is possible to hold people to results while doing so in an empathetic way. There are multiple paths to improving performance through understanding others emotional states and underlining mechanics. If you understand you can encourage and overcome and if you do not understand you are stuck with one tool. You are forced to use this tool no matter if it is effective or not (Unempathetic leaders struggle to see, understand and utilize alternative tools. We sometimes see this in some leaders who can't switch approaches when outcomes are lack luster.). 

Quality and outcomes can improve when we understand our employees and can use applied psychology to raise their total long term performance. While some employees may eventually succeed and some may eventually fail, having multiple paths to encourage performance provides adaptivity. Matching that with communication and strategy and one can manage larger organizations through new adaptive methods.

Great Lakes Ship Wrecks-100 Year old 238 foot Shipwreck

100 Year old cargo ship found 800 feet under the water. Huron. More information on the 238 foot Huronton at the The Great Lakes Historical Society

We had a boat problem last year which is getting super annoying as one of our team got a new and bigger boat and he didn't have time with repairs. Mine is too small for going out too far. Maybe this summer we will be more motivated in the Queen City search in Delta County. 

Huronton Shipwreck from The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum on Vimeo.